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'There is no question of forfeiting the match, it has been only called off' : Rajiv Shukla

Quite a few speculations are going around about the scoreline of the series after the fifth Test between England and India in Manchester was called off due to COVID-19 fears

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Rajiv Shukla

Rajiv Shukla ( Image Credit: Twitter)

Quite a few speculations are going around about the scoreline of the series after the fifth Test between England and India in Manchester was called off due to COVID-19 fears. When ECB released the statement about the match getting called off, they mentioned that India had forfeited the match.

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In case of a forfeit, England would have been declared winners, with the series reading 2-2. However, BCCI Vice President Rajiv Shukla has issued a clarification and said there is no question of India forfeiting the match and the negotiations are on with the England Cricket Board (ECB) to resolve the issue. The ECB also updated their statement and removed the word forfeit.

“After wide consultations between BCC President, BCCI Secretary, Treasurer, me and Joint Secretary, along with ECB Chairman and CEO and in consultation with the players, captain, senior players, it was decided to call off this Test match which was slated in Manchester,” Shukla said as quoted by firstindia.co.in

“And other things you know, other negotiations with ECB will continue in order to resolve the whole issue amicably. There is no question of forfeiting the match, it has been only called off,” he added.

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Several reports also revealed that the 5th Test can be played next year when India tour England for six white-ball matches in July. Speaking about the same, Shukla said negotiations are underway between BCCI and ECB and the issue will soon be resolved.

The chaos happened after India assistant physio Yogesh Parmar tested positive for COVID-19. This was days after Ravi Shastri, Bharat Arun, R Sridhar and Nitin Patel returned positive results. With the latest COVID-19 scare, there were speculations that the match will be called off but the players tested negative on the morning of the match after which the Test was all set to go.

However, few players expressed their concerns and felt that situation can become worst if any player tests positive on match days after which the boards mutually decided to call off the match.

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